♘ Be Brave ♘

XCIX

The world seems to freeze for a moment, and that's when I hear Cassandra cry out. She looks down, and I follow her gaze to find a blood stain begin to blossom on her chest. She looks at me, then crumples to the ground. "Cassandra! Cassandra, wake up!" Irene rushes forward to examine her, and I look in the direction where the shot came from.

The guests are running every which way, and in the middle of it all is Eric, a gun in hand. "I told you you'd pay for this! She. Is. Mine!" Anger courses through me, and I run at him, my only plan being to kill him once and for all.

When I reach him, I hit his face over and over again, not stopping even when blood begins to flow down his nose. Through it all he just smiles, a crazed look on his face. "Four, wait!" People are screaming, begging me to stop, but I ignore their pleas. Just as I am starting to aim for his jaw, I feel something sharp strike my skin. And the world goes black.
***
When I wake up, I'm vaguely aware of an aching pain in my head, but otherwise I feel fine. Giddy, even. Sunlight is streaming in through my window. I like it. Smiling, I try to get up, to get nearer to the window, but as soon as I attempt to move, I feel dizzy and fall back on the bed. I giggle.

The sound is foreign, but I like it. "Oops." I sit for a moment and then try to stand again. I take small steps toward the window and look outside. It looks deserted. I gasp. What if aliens came here and took everyone? What a ridiculous theory. I grin at the thought of Cassandra dressed like an alien, five-eyed and with twenty arms.

Cassandra. I wonder where she is. I'm about to leave the room to search for her, but Matthew comes in just then. "Hey, dad. Where's my wife? She hasn't divorced me already, has she?" I laugh, but he doesn't laugh along with me. Maybe he doesn't like jokes, I think.

"They gave you too much," he mutters. "Too much what? Cake?" I like cake. I'm hungry. "No, they... never mind." I frown. "You haven't answered my question. Where is she? Where's Cassandra?" Matthew looks away. "Sit down." I comply. "What's wrong? I want to go see her, you know. We haven't cut the cake yet. I don't think we even finished our dance! She's going to be really mad, and I don't want to argue on our wedding day. Come on, let's go find her."

I start to get up, but Matthew shakes his head. "Wait, son. There's something... something I need to tell you." I sigh. "Okay, but make it quick. I need to get back to Cassandra." Matthew looks away again. Am I really that ugly? Why doesn't he want to look at me? Oh, my God, maybe the aliens turned me into a Martian and I just haven't realized it! I chuckle.

"Cassandra... she..." I frown. "What?" Matthew shakes his head. "She's... she's in a coma." The trance I seem to be in suddenly disappears as the implications of this simple statement sink in. "She's dead?"

Dread threatens to overwhelm me. "No, no, no, no. She's just... asleep. But Irene has no idea when she'll wake up." Tears burn behind my eyes. "What?" I whisper. "There's a chance she will. But no one knows when that will be. I... I don't know what to say, son. I'm sorry." He looks at me with pity in his eyes. "Don't." I hiss. "Don't talk about her as if she was already gone. Don't throw me a pity party. I don't need it."

If I've hurt him, he doesn't let it show. "I apologize." I look away. "Leave me alone. Please." I can tell he wants to protest, but gives in after a minute. I'll be outside if you need anything." I remain silent until I hear the door close behind him... And that's when I break down. I let my tears go. I let go of all the anger that I'd been holding back ever since I found Cassandra in the dorm, being assaulted by Eric.

That's what your name means. God is good. I smirk. Yeah, right. If God is as good as Cassandra made him out to be, why would he allow this to happen? Why would he snatch away the only chance at a moment of true happiness I'd ever had? Maybe Marcus is right. Maybe I am selfish. But is it so bad to want things to go my way once in awhile?